Cat scratched baby

[SideEyeing]

Hi there,
Imagine I'm going to be flamed for letting the cat near DD (8m). Please be gentle, am feeling horrible.
We have a rather grumpy elderly cat who for the most part avoids DD. Unfortunately she adores him and now that she's newly crawling likes to follow him around when he occasionally ambles into the kitchen to eat. Normally he jumps on a table if she comes too close but today she managed to grab a handful of fur (I was trying to get her dinner sorted and took my eyes off. I realise I'm a massive dick and I feel uttetly shit😔) and he swiped her arm. He hasn't broken the skin but there's a white scratch mark. Do I need to see the doc? If he'd broken the skin there'd be no question, I'd take her to the walk in straight away.
I feel like the worst parent ever. I'm going to need to rehome the cat aren't I?
Fuck :(

Shit didn't mean to post in AIBU.

I wouldn't have thought that required a drs appointment.

Clean it with whatever you clean wounds with, keep an eye on it.

As to rehoming the cat - if you can't manage things so that cat or child cannot avoid one another/leave one another alone then yes, rehome, but there are ways of reducing contact simply using more baby gates, more vigilance/better management etc.

Wipe clean and magic Sudocrem is your friend here

That does not required a drs app. She is obviously your first child as you are being over the top.

Thank you :( I've put savlon on. I adore our cat and he's generally been really tolerant to the new addition. Just feel like a dick for taking my eye off. She's never really had a cut before, let alone an animal scratch. I don't want to rehome him but she's so bloody quick now and going through majoe separation anxiety, I don't know how I 100% guarantee they won't cross paths.

@ILoveFood87 She is, and I'm definitely very anxious and over the top about this sort of thing. Always happy for a head wobble!

Why would you rehome the cat!? How horrible are you!!

You don’t need a doctor.
You don’t need to rehome the cat.
Stairgates or a playpen to keep them separate?
Don’t beat yourself up OP.

@ILoveFood87 I guess I'm worried that his life is going to be shit if I'm constantly shooing him away. I love the cat, I don't want him to feel rejected then get jealous.

@Wolfiefan @Chezacheza @WiddlinDiddlin Thanks, that makes me feel a bit better. I've done the classic effing google and panicked.

Please don't rehome your cat. Presumably you can keep your baby contained in one room? Does the cat go outside at all? By the time your baby is old enough to have free time of the house, they should be able to learn not to touch the cat. It simply isn't fair to rehome the poor cat for defending itself . You made a commitment when you homed the cat IMO, and it shouldn't be too difficult to keep your baby away from him and give him places to go away from the baby.

I don't think you need to be thinking about rehoming the cat. He avoids her, he just wasn't able to avoid her today. How did your DD react to being swiped? If she associates being swiped with grabbing him, she may not grab him again.

I really don't see the big deal here. No Dr's or removing required. Just watch them better in future.

Your child is learning not to mess with cats.

Don’t worry about it.

You don’t need to go to the doctors and you don’t need to rehome the cat. Just put a bit of sudocream on the scratch and hopefully cat will continue to keep its distance. All is fine.

Sheesh. It’ll all be OK. Our cat full on punched/whacked DD in the head when she was not much older. Lesson learned all round. There was so much noise as a consequence that they avoided each other after that until DD was older.

I think it’s important for the cat to eat in peace so maybe put DD in her high chair or something.

@UpsyDaisysarmpit You're right and it's the last thing I'd want. I'm just so scared all the time (about everything, not just this) and I guess my first thought after panicking about infection was what sort of life does a cat who was "only pebble" for years have if he's now hushed away coming into his own kitchen.
Basically I'm not a great parent or cat owner it seems.

I’ve got several more cats than you, including two grumpy old cats! My 9 month old loves them and they for the most part love him... I’m under no illusions that there will be swipes every so often! Try to see it as learning for your DD (I imagine I’m gonna get my arse handed to me for suggesting that haha) but honestly she has to learn to be gentle with your cat, and the occasional smack from kitty won’t hurt her and will probably speed up the learning! Have you a playpen/travel cot you can pop her into while you’re getting on with tasks? Or a carrier to keep her with you?

Imagine I'm going to be flamed for letting the cat near DD (8m).

Should be the other way around. These things happen. I got scratched so many times when I was a baby by various animals. I also had fleas more time than one would think is ok😂 It happens. Maybe more baby gates cat can get through or over would help so cat can get to safety.

Why is she horrible for contemplating rehoming the cat?? The scratch could have been her baby's eyes. There are other possibilities too, yes, but keep your insults to yourself, ILoveFood87.

Nope, no doctor needed, just clean it and use antiseptic cream
And please don’t worry, you’re not an awful mum, it’s not your fault, your DC is exploring and learning, and today has learned not to grab the cat! x

Agree with others, OP. No need for Doctors and no need to rehome the poor cat. It'll all be fine. Be vigilant, of course. Try to keep them apart as much as possible until DD is older but it'll be fine. No big deal.

I wouldn’t have even dignified the post at 18:01 with a response. She’s clearly trying to wind you up and watch you go.

Absolutely you can and should rehome the cat. Let’s face it it’s never going to work isn’t. The cat will always be grumpy it’s obviously part of his nature and babies will always be inquisitive and grabby. Next time it could her eye.

Thanks all. I feel like a right twat, cheers for talking me down!

Step away from the Google!!
We got two rescue tortie kittens and they pretty much spent the first couple of months ambushing and attacking the kids! I didn’t rehome them (neither cats or kids!) and they have all settled well together.